Chapter 5: Rescue, New Skill
Under normal circumstances, a Seagull-class Frigate I could hold its own against three pirate raiding boats simultaneously. However, against five, even escaping would be difficult.
—Firstly, because pirates had the advantage of the asteroid belt’s unique terrain. Secondly, pirate ships generally reduced their armor to increase speed, making them specialized for raiding.
The communication was quickly connected, and a handsome blond man appeared on the communicator.
“Hello, I am Kadier Rockefeller from the North American region.” The blond man was all smiles, as if he wasn’t the one sending a distress signal but merely preparing to attend an ordinary evening party.
“Lin Zhichen, East Asia region.” Lin Zhichen frowned slightly. He saw certain traits of an aristocratic scion in this person, and considering the Rockefeller family’s notoriety, his background was obvious.
As hidden aristocrats of the old era, these individuals possessed a long-term vision and boldness that ordinary people lacked, thanks to their excellent noble education.
As early as the first contact with the Federation, these old aristocrats began planning for the future, sending large quantities of Earth’s antiques to auction houses to exchange for considerable resources. They also trained family members, purchased starships, and actively transitioned to the interstellar era.
If it were just that, they would at most be considered pioneers embracing the new era. However, after training enough captains and forming family fleets, they revealed their old-era greed.
Taking advantage of the protection period after joining the Federation, they made extensive purchases of advanced industrial equipment, aiming to monopolize key sectors like energy and heavy manufacturing.
In the solar system, those prime “refresh points” where lone pirates frequently appeared were also being meddled with, leading to rumors of “monster snatching.”
There were certainly some false accusations among them, but expecting a tiger to eat grass was clearly unrealistic.
The new era also brought new opportunities, and no amount of cake was enough to go around. Giants like the Rockefellers, who took an extra share now, would take ten more in the future as they grew, naturally arousing the vigilance of those with foresight.
“I’m very sorry to bother you, but I need your help!” Kadier Rockefeller said earnestly. “Five pirate raiding boats are chasing me, and I’m afraid I can’t hold out for another two hours!”
“Sounds quite serious. How do we calculate the rescue reward?” Lin Zhichen asked.
“All the spoils of war will be yours, and I’ll also give you an additional 100 energy coins!” Kadier Rockefeller directly threw out a trump card:
“My only request is that you ensure the safety of me and my ship!”
“That sounds very sincere. But can you tell me how you ended up encountering these pirates? Don’t tell me it was a coincidence. You should know that a frigate’s onboard radar range far exceeds that of pirate boats!” Lin Zhichen pressed further.
Kadier Rockefeller, who had been quite calm, was momentarily stunned by the question. He then frowned and said, “Sir, isn’t that irrelevant to the rescue mission?”
“So, it’s a big secret?” Lin Zhichen squinted his eyes. “I can wait and see what happens to you. There are only about 300 captains on Earth right now, and I don’t believe you’ll be lucky enough to encounter a second one!”
“Are you threatening me?” Kadier Rockefeller’s face immediately turned cold. “Buddy, curiosity killed the cat!
200 energy coins, just for you to hold off the five pirate boats!”
“Is 10 years of your life only worth 200 energy coins? Three months of intelligence logs plus 500 energy coins!” Lin Zhichen demanded bluntly.
In the new universe, natural persons had an advantage: upon death, they would lose ten years of their lifespan and then respawn at the nearest friendly base to the place of death, until their lifespan was completely exhausted.
Kadier Rockefeller’s face darkened, and he stared coldly at Lin Zhichen through the holographic projector.
Lin Zhichen remained unfazed, quietly waiting for the other’s response. He was in no hurry.
The silence lasted for a few minutes before Kadier Rockefeller finally couldn’t bear it any longer and gritted his teeth, saying, “Deal!”
Soon, after signing an electronic contract, a video file was sent over, and Lin Zhichen was pleased to see an additional 500 energy coins in his Federation bank account.
This was a substantial sum, enough to rebuild a new ship with the frigate blueprint.
“We’ve got a job, let’s move!” Lin Zhichen commanded his crew with satisfaction, rapidly heading towards the signal source.
An hour later, the signals of the frigate and the pirate raiding boats appeared on the edge of the radar.
Without any intention of risking his life to save others, the frigate stopped at the edge of the radar’s one-light-second detection range. The three electromagnetic cannons turned and began charging.
“Prepare, aim, fire!”
At Lin Zhichen’s command, three sub-light-speed alloy projectiles were launched, and every four seconds, another round was charged and fired.
At this moment, an urgent communication broke in, and Kadier Rockefeller’s furious figure appeared above the holographic device, shouting angrily:
“Damn it! I asked you to hold them off, not to hide like a coward from afar! Don’t forget we’ve already signed a contract. If I go down, you won’t have it easy either!”
“Calm down, buddy. The world is so wonderful, yet you’re so irritable,” Lin Zhichen said calmly. “Soon, you’ll see that this world is full of miracles!”
In fact, there was no need to wait long. A pirate raiding boat was soon hit by an electromagnetic projectile, exploding into a ball of fire.
The unfortunate pirate ship had no evasive measures and was directly hit by nearly ten projectiles in five consecutive waves, exploding into a fireball on the spot.
It was evident that after the last combat training, Lin Zhichen’s gunners had made significant progress, achieving sniper-level accuracy in this long-range bombardment.
“My God!” Kadier Rockefeller stood dumbfounded, staring at the radar in shock.
After the first pirate raiding boat was destroyed, the second and third raiding boats were damaged and slowed down, soon lighting up the starry sky with the second and third bursts of light.
Those were the explosions of nuclear fission reactors, illuminating a vast area of space.
At this moment, Lin Zhichen watched the panel with delight as the three gunners made significant progress in a very short time.
“Name: Gunner DQXJPS** (Human, Light Red)
Gender: Male
Age: 19
Profession: Gunner (Advanced)
Talent: Bombardment (Light White): Kinetic weapon range +7%;
Precision (Light White): Kinetic weapon accuracy +6%
Skills: 1: Bombardment (White, Advanced 12.14%): Firing speed +20%, Bombardment damage +20%
2: Ultra-Long-Range Bombardment (Light Red, Advanced 7.28%): Range +200%
3: Precision (Light Red, Intermediate 84.15%): Bombardment accuracy +30%
Evaluation: Trust me, he would never chicken out when making a move!”
In a short period, not only did two key skills improve, but his talent also underwent a transformation.
More importantly, an additional Precision skill emerged, directly increasing bombardment accuracy, which explained the significant leap in hit rate!
Within a short time, three raiding boats were consecutively destroyed. The remaining two pirate boats seemed terrified and actually turned around in space, preparing to flee.